Archives

Two studies have shed new light on brown fat. In one study, Dr. Bruce Spiegelman reported that his team discovered a hormone, irisin, that is released during exercise and helps turn white fat cells into brown fat cells.

Dana-Farber has been named one of six research centers that will share a $16 million grant from the Edward P. Evans Foundation to study Myelodysplastic Syndromes (MDS), a group of diseases that affect the bone marrow and blood.

Dr. Bruce Spiegelman reports in the journal Cell that he and his colleagues ave identified a new kind of fat, called "beige fat," that burns calories, rather than stores them. They are now searching for ways to turn on such fat cells in humans to combat obesity and diabetes.

Researchers, including Dr. Matthew Meyerson and Dr. Bruce Johnson of Dana-Farber, found from a large study of the genetics of a common lung cancer, that more than half the tumors from that cancer have mutations that can be treated by drugs that are being developed or can be easily developed. (Full article requires a subscription)

A trial led by Mark Kieran, MD, director of pediatric neuro-oncology at Dana-Farber/Children's Hospital Cancer Center found that the drug lonafarnib resulted in weight gain and improved cardiovascular health in children with progeria, a fatal disease causing premature aging. This is an important first step in identifying potential therapies for a disease for which there has been no treatments, Dr. Kieran said.

Dr. Bruce Spiegelman of Dana-Farber discussed his laboratory's discovery of a new type of energy-burning fat cell (called "beige fat") in adult humans, which he says may have therapeutic potential for treating obesity. Obesity is a risk factor for cancer.

A study by researchers at Dana-Farber shows many patients with advanced cancers put false hope in chemotherapy. The study, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, found 69 percent of patients with lung cancer and 81 percent of those with colorectal cancer did not report understanding chemotherapy was not likely to cure their cancer.

A study led by Dr. Jane Weeks suggests that many patients with advanced lung and colorectal cancer harbor the fundamental misperception that treatments that can extend life and alleviate pain might also cure them. Dr. Deborah Schrag, co-author of the study, said the researchers were also interested in examining whether where doctors worked might affect the way the message was communicated.

Lung cancer patients and their families often hope for more from treatment aimed at making them more comfortable, and oncologists may be failing to communicate to patients the limits of measures being offered, according to a study from Dr. Jane Weeks and Dr. Deborah Schrag.

The Atlantic recognized Dr. Jay Bradner as a "Brave Thinker" for providing open-source access to a molecule he discovered. Dr. Bradner's goal is to expedite the potential development of cancer therapeutics based on the molecule.